by Britta Bucholz

A $116,000 grant received last month will support four new H. N. & Frances C. Berger Foundation Fellowships for Outstanding Performance. The funding will help pay the first-year expenses of four outstanding students in City of Hope’s Graduate School of Biological Sciences.

City of Hope’s graduate school was established in 1994 and offers a Ph.D. degree in biological sciences. As one of the few programs of its kind in the nation, the Graduate School of Biological Sciences provides its students with a rare opportunity to conduct research that offers translational potential, enabling students to work closely with scientists and physicians in developing new therapies and tests for life-threatening diseases treated at City of Hope. To date, the school has graduated 31 aspiring researchers.

"The Berger Foundation donations have made it possible to honor our most promising students with fellowships based upon their unique accomplishments," said John Rossi, Ph.D., professor and chair, Division of Molecular Biology, and the graduate school’s dean. "These funds have also enabled us to use our budget dollars for funding other students, thereby allowing us to expand our program to attract top-notch applicants from around the nation and the world."

The H.N. and Frances C. Berger Foundation was established as a private family foundation in 1961. The basis the Bergers used to establish their foundation was to provide people with the opportunity to improve their own situations.